Scientists have tracked down previously undiscovered colonies of Antarctic emperor penguins after spotting trails of their droppings on satellite pictures, a study said last week.
Zooming in on individual penguins is beyond current satellite imagery, but the tell-tale reddish-brown stains on the polar ice helped home in on large groups of the black and white flightless birds.
Mapping expert Peter Fretwell of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) said the poop trail helps to track movements of the penguins, which in turn helps to monitor how they respond to climate change.
“We can’t see actual penguins on the satellite maps because the resolution isn’t good enough. But during the breeding season the birds stay at a colony for eight months,” he said.
“The ice gets pretty dirty and it’s the guano stains that we can see,” he added.
The penguins spend much of their lives at sea, but return to their colonies to breed during the Antarctic winter. Scientists managed to identify 38 colonies, including 10 new ones, according to the research published in the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography.
“This is a very exciting development,” said BAS penguin ecologist Phil Trathan. “Now we know exactly where the penguins are, the next step will be to count each colony so we can get a much better picture of population size.
“Using satellite images combined with counts of penguin numbers puts us in a much better position to monitor future population changes over time.”(AFP)
上週有一項研究指出，科學家從衛星空照圖中發現南極國王企鵝的糞痕，並進而追蹤到先前未曾發現的企鵝棲息地。
目前衛星圖像科技仍無法放大觀看個別的企鵝，不過這些出現在極地冰上可供辨認的紅棕色污點，有助於找出這群黑白毛色又不會飛的鳥類。
英國南極觀測站的地圖製圖專家彼得．佛雷威爾說，追蹤糞便有助於他們了解這些企鵝的行動，並進而監控牠們對氣候變遷的反應。
他說：「因為衛星圖的解析度不夠，所以我們無法真正觀測到企鵝。但在繁殖季節，這些企鵝會在棲息地停留八個月。」
他還說：「冰面會變得很髒，那就是我們看到的鳥糞。」
南極國王企鵝多生活在海上，但冬天時會回到棲息地繁殖。《全球生態暨生物地理學》期刊刊載的研究指出，科學家找出三十八個牠們的棲息地，其中有十個新發現的地點。
英國南極觀測站的企鵝生態學者菲爾．崔森說：「這是一項很令人興奮的發現。現在我們確知企鵝的位置，下一步就是計算出每個棲息地的企鵝數量，如此一來，我們就能對企鵝族群的大小有更清楚的概念。」
「利用衛星圖結合企鵝數量，更有助於我們未來觀測企鵝數量的變遷。」（法新社�翻譯：袁星塵）
A: Apart from the musical Sunset Boulevard, Japanese pop diva Ayumi Hamasaki is also touring Taiwan after a 17-year wait. She’s holding two concerts starting tonight. B: Ayu has the most No. 1 hits of any Japanese solo artist, with 33 total. A: “Time” magazine even crowned her as “The Empress of Pop.” B: She staged shows in Taipei back in 2007 and 2008, causing an “Ayu fever” across Taiwan. A: Unfortunately, the singer has been deaf in her left ear since 2008, and is gradually losing hearing in her right ear. I’m so excited to see her singing in Taipei again. A: 除了音樂劇《日落大道》，日本歌后濱崎步睽違17年，今晚起在台北熱唱兩場。
Alan Turing, celebrated as the “father of computer science,” was a brilliant mathematician and scientist. Born in London in 1912, Turing showed exceptional talent in mathematics and science from a young age. At 16, he understood Albert Einstein’s work without difficulty. This intelligence carried him through studies at Cambridge University and later at Princeton University in the US, where he further explored complex mathematical theories. In 1936, Turing introduced the concept of the Turing machine, a theoretical device for solving mathematical problems. He described it as having an infinite tape on which symbols could be read, interpreted, and modified. With simple
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A: After touring Taipei, the play Life of Pi is now heading to Taichung. You wanna go? B: Did you forget? We’re going to Taipei this weekend to see the musical Sunset Boulevard and go to Japanese pop diva Ayumi Hamasaki’s concert. A: Oh yeah, that’s right. The classic composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber is touring Taiwan for the first time. B: I heard that it’s adapted from a 1950 film with the same title. A: And the show will feature legendary soprano Sarah Brightman, who is finally returning to the musical stage after 30 years. We can’t miss it. A: 在台北巡演後，戲劇《少年Pi的奇幻漂流》本週起將移師台中。要去嗎？
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